Outside the border, about a hundred miles away, three people dressed in green camouflage suits were cautiously sneaking through a forest dense with bushes and trees.
These three were Gu Yuan and his companions, out on a mission. After accepting the task, they had left the border without delay, embarking on their very first assignment.
Qin Erlang walked at the very front of the group. His Tai Sui Divine Body could foresee and avoid dangers that would befall him, making him the ideal scout.
They had already traveled a hundred miles. The first fifty miles, due to frequent military patrols, had been relatively safe. It was the latter half of the journey where they had encountered quite a few third-tier fierce beasts. While no fourth-tier beasts had appeared, engaging with third-tier beasts and failing to end the fight instantly could attract other fierce beasts with the ensuing combat shockwaves, ultimately leading to the three of them being annihilated by a horde.
Throughout the journey, they had been safe thanks to Qin Erlang's Tai Sui Divine Body predicting and avoiding dangers.
Qin Erlang, advancing, suddenly stopped. He raised his palm and slowly crouched down. Gu Yuan and Wu Gui immediately understood, ceasing their movements and following Qin Erlang's lead.
Qin Erlang gently parted the bushes ahead with both hands, creating a small gap through which Gu Yuan and the other could see the situation.
Ahead, a herd of creatures resembling a cross between cattle and antelopes were leisurely grazing on fresh grass.
These creatures were called Scaled Bulls, their most distinctive feature being the scaled skin covering their bodies.
These fierce beasts typically lived in herds. Such a large group gathered here indicated they had stumbled into the Scaled Bulls' territory. If they proceeded rashly, they would face the attack of the entire herd.
"What should we do? Go around?" Qin Erlang softly closed the bushes and, hidden behind them, asked Gu Yuan and Wu Gui.
His voice was wrapped in true energy, preventing keen-eared fierce beasts from hearing it. It was a simpler version of transmitting sound into one's ear.
Gu Yuan and Wu Gui exchanged a glance and nodded. The three decided to take a detour, as entering the Scaled Bulls' line of sight would provoke an attack from the entire tribe, attracting a large number of fierce beasts.
However, ten minutes later, the three found themselves back where they started.
Gu Yuan's expression was grim. He hadn't expected that another direction led to the territory of a fourth-tier fierce beast. If not for Qin Erlang's sharp senses, they would have been pursued by it.
The three exchanged glances again and decided to proceed in another direction.
Again, ten minutes later, they returned to their original position.
This time, all three looked extremely displeased. The other direction was a large lake, and going around it would add significant time, at least over an hour, which was detrimental to their subsequent mission.
"What do we do?" Qin Erlang asked with a grim expression.
"What else can we do? We charge straight through!" Gu Yuan said with a determined look, his face hardening.
"I'm the fastest. I'll clear the path for you, just keep up with me," Gu Yuan said earnestly to the other two.
Metallic liquid flowed from his hand, eventually taking the form of Qiu Shui.
"Alright!" The other two nodded, circulating true energy within their bodies, slowly accumulating power to unleash greater speed later.
"3, 2, 1, charge!" Gu Yuan counted down, and as he reached "one," his body exploded with powerful lightning, transforming into a blue blur that shot out of the bushes, heading directly towards the forest opposite.
Simultaneously, the leader of the Scaled Bulls detected the sudden intruders. It let out a roar, its body over two meters tall transforming into a charging tank as it lunged directly at Gu Yuan. The other Scaled Bulls responded, following their leader in a charge towards the sprinting Gu Yuan.
Gu Yuan, a bolt of lightning, weaved through the attacking Scaled Bulls. Qiu Shui, in his hand, was coated with electricity and vibrated at high frequency, maximizing its cutting power.
Even the hardest scales on the Scaled Bulls' necks couldn't withstand it. It was as smooth as a hot knife cutting through butter, barely slowing Gu Yuan's advance.
As Gu Yuan drew the attention of the entire Scaled Bull herd, Qin Erlang and Wu Gui cautiously and swiftly moved past from the side. Although they attracted some Scaled Bulls, they dealt with them quickly and efficiently. Wu Gui's attack style was swordplay, unleashing sword qi to harass the Scaled Bulls, who were then decapitated by Qin Erlang's halberd.
Seeing that the other two had safely passed, Gu Yuan looked at the still charging Scaled Bulls. His eyes hardened, and the true energy vortex within his body began to spin madly, circulating true energy.
Brilliant lightning erupted from his body. Gu Yuan's gaze locked onto the Scaled Bull leader.
He constantly calculated trajectories in his mind. His figure blurred, instantly vanishing from his spot and transforming into a bolt of lightning, streaking towards the Scaled Bull leader.
Thunder Cut: Flash!
However, this time Gu Yuan used not a simple Thunder Cut: Flash, but a bending sword technique.
A z-shaped electric light flashed, and Gu Yuan, as if teleporting, appeared directly before the Scaled Bull leader. In its human-like eyes, a look of astonishment flickered. A blue light flashed, and its head instantly fell, the wound as smooth as a mirror. Gu Yuan's hand erupted with electricity, cauterizing the still-unshed blood from the severed neck, and he swiftly stored it in his storage space.
Finally, under the bewildered gaze of the still-uncomprehending herd of Scaled Bulls, he transformed into a swift electric light, leaving the area and disappearing into the forest behind.
Only a few Scaled Bull corpses, the leader's wide and unseeing eyes, and the lingering smell of burnt flesh remained in the air.
The two, waiting in the forest, were surprised to see Gu Yuan escape the encirclement and even kill the Scaled Bull leader.
Wu Gui watched Gu Yuan's electric-light figure, his eyes shining with a peculiar light.
Gu Yuan rejoined the other two, quickly saying, "Let's go! The smell of blood will attract other fierce beasts. Speed up and leave."
The two nodded, circulating their true energy and accelerating. This time, they didn't proceed cautiously, as the smell of blood in this area would attract fierce beasts from miles around. Taking advantage of the chaos, the three could accelerate their departure.
Ten minutes later, they encountered only a few beasts to avoid on the road, but otherwise faced no danger. They resumed their original formation, with Qin Erlang leading and Gu Yuan and Wu Gui following closely.
Finally, after two hours, the three arrived at their mission location.
Gu Yuan looked at the canyon a few hundred meters away. According to the intelligence, entering the canyon would directly lead into a small secret realm.
He silently retreated and hid behind a large tree that required four or five people to embrace. Wu Gui, holding the intelligence, was analyzing it with Qin Erlang. Despite Qin Erlang's tall stature, his mind was as meticulous as Gu Yuan's.
"How is it?" Qin Erlang asked softly when Gu Yuan returned.
"There are two puppeteered guardians at the canyon entrance. We can't get in without making a sound," Gu Yuan shook his head, sharing what he saw from the intelligence. Because the puppeteered guardians were connected to members of the Demon God Sect, their death would be instantly sensed by a sect member.
*Clack!*
Wu Gui slammed shut the intelligence and stood up, saying, "What are we waiting for? Let's charge straight in. We'll be discovered anyway, so let's just fight our way through."
Qin Erlang also stood up, his two-meter-tall frame exuding a palpable pressure.
Gu Yuan nodded. At this point, he hadn't ruled out luring the puppeteered guardians away, but the three had to stay together. If they separated, they might be picked off one by one. Gu Yuan trusted the intelligence from Great Dragon Pass and decided to charge in directly.
The puppeteered guardians stared forward expressionlessly, guarding the entrance to the cave behind them. Their command was to prevent any life from entering.
Black pupils reflected a blue electric light. Before it could react, its vision rapidly ascended. It seemed to see a familiar figure. Its shriveled brain suddenly conjured a thought: this looked like its own body. Then, its vision went black.
Gu Yuan panted heavily, Qiu Shui in his hand emitting white steam, a result of the intense heat generated by friction with the air.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk, Gu Yuan, your speed is truly incredible. If it were me, I couldn't defend either," Wu Gui's amazed voice came from behind.
As for Qin Erlang, who had sparred with Gu Yuan before, he was already familiar with his explosive power.
Gu Yuan took a deep breath and said, "Let's go, there are bigger monsters ahead."
The two nodded, circulating true energy to maintain a state of readiness for an instant burst. They cautiously followed Gu Yuan into the narrow canyon.
Inside the secret realm, a pale man in a white robe, seated on an altar forged from human corpses, opened his eyes. They glowed with an eerie scarlet light. Sensing the disappearance of the puppeteered guardian he had stationed outside the canyon, a red light flashed in his eyes, and he murmured, "Humans, you deserve to die!"
ps: Dear readers, I was surprised by yesterday's results, which exceeded my limits. First, I thank all readers for your support and encouragement. I will continue to work hard.
I had originally planned for four chapters today, but due to many reader questions, I had to make revisions, which left insufficient time. Therefore, I can only offer two chapters for now. However, tomorrow will be a ten-thousand-word update. I don't have many other commitments these days and have ample time for writing.
I spoke with my editor today. Although yesterday's performance was good, it was only for one day, and today it has been halved. The editor asked me to solicit some reviews, as this is very beneficial for my performance. I kindly ask readers who haven't commented yet to use their precious little hands and help me by leaving a review.
I'm not asking for five-star ratings; even a four-star rating would make me very happy. Please, this is very helpful for my performance. The better the data, the more motivated I'll be to update, even if it's ten thousand words every day. Encouraging updates also helps my data. I thank all readers here.
Thank you all.